Self-Perceived Instructional Competence, Self-Efficacy and Burnout during the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Study of a Group of Italian School Teachers

The role of teachers' socio-emotional competence in reducing burnout through increased work engagement

Introduction

Research has highlighted the relevance of socio-emotional competence in buffering the harmful impacts of perceived stress on the psychological facets of the teaching profession. The purpose of this paper is to innovatively investigate the relationships between perceived stress, work engagement, and burnout in a single comprehensive model, when considering the potential role that socio-emotional competence plays in mitigating the adverse impact of perceived stress on burnout.

Methods

A total of 276 Italian in-service teachers (mean age = 46.6 ± 9.9 years) completed quantitative self-report measures of perceived stress, socio-emotional competence, work engagement, and burnout. Data were analyzed by using a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach.

Results

All fit indexes supported the model's full acceptance and suggested that teachers' socio-emotional competence reduced the effect of perceived stress on the risk of burnout by increasing their level of work engagement.

Discussion

The implications of the findings are discussed in terms of promoting interventions that target not only stress reduction but also foster teachers' socio-emotional competence in order to maintain a good level of work engagement and reduce the effect of stress on burnout.

A Scope Review of the Teacher Well-being Research Between 1968 and 2021

This review aimed at portraying a nuanced picture of the trajectory of teacher well-being research during 54 years from 1968 to 2021. This review used descriptive quantitative analysis with a dataset of 774 journal articles. The developmental trend demonstrates a considerable change in the volume of publications conducted during the most recent 14 years. Findings of the current review identify that research foci have covered the antecedents, nature, and effects of teacher well-being in a descending manner. Quantitative methods were observed as the most frequently used method in research studies. Moreover, the use of qualitative and mixed research methods increased in recent times. However, due to the considerable absence of mixed methods, longitudinal, and experimental research designs in this review’s corpus, our interpretation has been restricted to the ways in which teacher well-being can affect as well as be affected by associated constructs. Research on teacher well-being positions itself at the intermediate stage focusing on fusion relations combining new and recognized structures and adopting qualitative as well as quantitative practices. This review supports the evolution of the teacher well-being literature and poses recommendations for future research.

Teachers' Innovative Work Behavior as a Function of Self-Efficacy, Burnout, and Irrational Beliefs: A Structural Equation Model

Teachers' innovative work behavior (TIWB) is crucial in the contemporary demanding educational environments for overcoming any commonplace issues and to ensure sustainability and development. It refers to a process in which the employee tries to create new ideas, adopt them, apply them in the school context, and then communicate them to other members of the organization in order to achieve a communal benefit. Among a plethora of factors that could influence such behavior, self-efficacy, burnout, and irrational beliefs have been proposed as potential covariates. In the present study, the associations of the above constructs with TIWB are concomitantly investigated by employing structural equation modeling (SEM). Data were taken from the participation of in-service teachers (N = 964) in primary education via self-reported questionnaires. The proposed SEM model exhibited a satisfactory goodness-of-fit to the empirical data, highlighting the direct effects of the independent variables on TIWB, while mediation analysis showed that irrational beliefs and burnout act also as mediators between self-efficacy and innovative work behavior. The findings are in line with previous reports and are interpretable in the context of modern theories, while a discussion on theoretical and practical implications along with emerging ideas and perspectives for further research is provided.

Relational Competence, School Adjustment and Emotional Skills: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Group of Junior and High School Students of the Sicilian Hinterland

Research has demonstrated the influence of emotional adjustment on the manifestation of problematic behaviors in adolescence, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the present research is to investigate the role of self-esteem and relational skills on school performance in a group of middle and high school students during the COVID-19 period. The research involved 392 students, aged between 11 and 20 (M = 13.78; S.D. = 2.56). Participants completed the following instruments: an anamnestic constructed ad hoc questionnaire; the Interpersonal Relationships Test, in order to evaluate the perception of adolescents concerning the quality of their relationships in social, family and school contexts; and the Multidimensional Test of Self-Esteem, structured in six scales, which coincide with the dimensions considered constitutive of self-esteem. The preliminary data have shown how the older girls, attending the high school, tend to manifest a higher level of social competence with peer group and teachers. Furthermore, the perception of a reduced emotional self-efficacy but an elevated environmental control and good interpersonal skills seem to predict the school adjustment. Understanding adolescents' perceptions of difficulties and their social support networks can offer some insight into how major social changes can be associated with individual well-being, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Primary school teachers' emotions, implicit beliefs, and self-efficacy during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the Covid-19 pandemic, primary school teachers faced many challenges when providing online and hybrid teaching, especially in PE classes. This study aimed to analyze emotions, self-perceived instructional competence, and incremental beliefs during the first lockdown, in distance education instructional delivery, and, as the pandemic emergency persisted, in hybrid teaching. One hundred and four primary school teachers (Males = 7; Females = 97; M_age= 53.24; SD_age= 7.34) were involved in the study from four Italian Primary Schools. Participants filled in the Motivation, Emotion, Strategies, and Teaching questionnaire (MESI) ( 1) administered in an online survey. Results showed that younger teachers had significantly lower scores in negative emotions when they taught than the older ones. On the other hand, older teachers have more belief in their own abilities to improve teaching, unlike younger teachers. Multivariate regression analysis indicated that teachers' positive emotions experienced in teaching predict perceived instructional efficacy during distance learning. Furthermore, teachers' positive emotions experienced in teaching and in the role of teacher predict teachers' changes in PE teaching during distance learning. Incremental beliefs predict perceived instructional efficacy during distance learning. Efforts on pre-service and in-service teacher training programs could help teachers strengthen emotional competencies and manage their stress in the classroom, both in normal educational contexts and in adverse conditions.

The Role of Emotional Intelligence and Metacognition in Teachers' Stress during Pandemic Remote Working: A Moderated Mediation Model

During the COVID-19 pandemic, in adapting to social and work changes and new technological methods for remote teaching, teachers were subjected to increased work pressure, which affected their well-being and led to increased negative stress and burnout. This study was designed to test whether dysfunctional outcomes resulting from adapting to new ways of teaching via technological tools can be mitigated by the protective factors of emotional intelligence and metacognition. The study involved 604 teachers in Sicily filling out a questionnaire consisting of four different scales: (1) the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SREIT); (2) the Metacognitive Functions Screening Scale (MFSS-30); (3) the Link Burnout Questionnaire (LBQ); and (4) the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale STSS-I. The results show that emotional intelligence mediates the relationship between certain remote work risk factors, as well as stress and burnout. In addition, metacognition was found to be a significant moderating factor in the relationship between risk factors and emotional intelligence. With regard to the United Nations' Agenda 2030 Goals, our results emphasize the importance of teachers' emotional and metacognitive skills in promoting quality of life and psychological well-being.

Teachers during the COVID-19 Era: The Mediation Role Played by Mentalizing Ability on the Relationship between Depressive Symptoms, Anxious Trait, and Job Burnout

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 outbreak caused severe changes in school activities over the past two years. Teachers underwent a re-planning of their teaching approaches, shifting from face-to-face teaching formats to remote ones. These challenges resulted in high levels of burnout. The identification of risk/protective factors contributing to burnout is crucial in order to inform intervention programs. Thus, we hypothesized a mediation role of teachers' mentalizing ability (processing of emotions, a component of mentalized affectivity) on the relationship between depression, anxiety, and depersonalization (burnout dimension). Two reverse models were computed. Job satisfaction, teachers' age and gender, school grade, and length of teaching experience served as covariates.

METHODS

466 (M(sd) = 46.2 (10.4) years) online questionnaires were completed by Italian teachers of primary (n = 204) and middle (n = 242) schools. Measures of burnout, depression, anxiety, and mentalization were administered.

RESULTS

The findings corroborated our hypotheses: in all models, processing emotions served as a mediator on the relationship between depression, anxiety, and depersonalization, and on the reciprocal one. Job satisfaction positively impacted processing emotion, and negatively impacted depression and depersonalization; women teachers reported high levels of the anxious trait.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, it can be concluded that the ability to mentalize has a beneficial impact on teachers' well-being. Policymaking, clinical, and research implications were discussed.

Teachers' emotional exhaustion during the COVID-19 pandemic: Levels, changes, and relations to pandemic-specific demands

We aimed to identify the levels of and changes in emotional exhaustion experienced by teachers and principals during the COVID-19 pandemic and pandemic-related stressors and resources. In a German sample of 2157 teachers and 374 principals, we found high levels and an increase of emotional exhaustion. Results from multi-group structural equation modeling analyses indicated that health concerns and workload were positively and social support negatively related to emotional exhaustion. Additional analyses of an open response question confirmed that teachers and principals experienced their work during the COVID-19 pandemic as predominantly stressful. These results indicate the importance of supporting both teachers and principals in reducing their exhaustion to help students overcome the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I couldn't do what I needed to do for my own family": Teacher-parents during COVID-19 lockdowns

This article draws data from a wider research project that focused on New Zealand and Australian schools' experiences of delivering education during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, we share the stories of 21 classroom teachers as they navigated teaching during the pandemic. We include a subset of teachers who were also parents of school-aged children and explore how they managed their dual role. The findings highlight the toll that teaching during this time took on teachers, personally and professionally, especially, those who were simultaneously balancing work and family demands. We use work-family border theory to explain the role conflict experienced by teachers, and teacher-parents, in particular.

Teacher burnout and turnover intention in higher education: The mediating role of job satisfaction and the moderating role of proactive personality

Introduction

Teacher burnout and frequent turnover negatively affect stability and productivity in the context of higher education. Despite the fact that the relationship between burnout and turnover intention has been thoroughly studied, the role of other factors in this relationship should be evaluated in order to better clarify underlying mechanisms, particularly in the context of higher education.

Methods

In this study, we first aim to bridge a research gap by utilizing job satisfaction as a mediating variable for the relationship between burnout and turnover intention. Moreover, we uniquely evaluate the role of proactive personality as a moderating variable, first in terms of the relationship between burnout and job satisfaction, and then for the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention. Based on 296 valid questionnaires collected from university faculty members in China, proposed hypotheses were evaluated empirically.

Results

The results demonstrate that, as expected, burnout has a significant and positive impact on turnover intention, and job satisfaction has significantly negative impact on turnover intention, with job satisfaction partially mediating the relationship between burnout and turnover intention. Moreover, proactive personality moderated the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention, with this relationship being stronger for individuals with high proactive personality as compared to low proactive personality.

Discussion

These findings provide a better understanding of the relationship between burnout and turnover intention of university instructors. Theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and recommendations for further research are provided.

Mathematics Teachers’ Encouragement of Their Students’ Metacognitive Processes

Researchers have conducted little research into teachers’ practices to encourage their students’ metacognition. The present research attempted to address this issue quantitatively by suggesting a questionnaire that measured teachers’ encouragement of students’ planning, monitoring, regulating, and evaluating. We present the results of the validity and reliability of the questionnaire. In addition, using a one-sample t-test, the results of the research revealed “normal”, “good”, and “very good” levels of teachers’ encouragement of their students’ metacognitive practices. The present research utilized an independent-sample t-test to investigate the significance of the difference in teachers’ metacognitive practices due to gender and to academic qualification. The results indicated that the metacognitive practices for male and female teachers were significantly different in planning and regulating, while the differences were not significant in monitoring and evaluating. In addition, the research results indicated that the participating teachers’ practices related to students’ metacognitive processes did not differ significantly due to the teachers’ academic qualification. When utilizing a one-way ANOVA test to investigate the significance of the difference in teachers’ metacognitive practices due to years of experience, this difference was not significant for any of the factors of metacognitive practices.

Teachers’ emotional exhaustion before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: Neither emotional exertion nor vacation feeling

Purpose

In this paper, we use latent change models to examine the changes in in-service teachers’ emotional exhaustion before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of the pandemic, teachers are confronted with challenging tasks, which can lead to stress and burnout. Resultingly, teachers’ stress experiences have been examined in different studies. However, often the change in those experiences remains unclear. Against this background, we investigate longitudinally how the emotional exhaustion of a cohort of German teachers changes. In addition, we examine whether gender, age, teaching degree studied, or the amount of time spent in distance learning affected the change during the pandemic.

Methods

We surveyed German veteran teachers (N = 382) about their emotional exhaustion at three measurement points. The first two surveys were before the COVID-19 pandemic (t₁: winter 2016/2017; t₂: spring: 2019), and the third measurement point was after the first lockdown Germany in summer 2020 (t₃). To answer the research questions, we used neighbor-change models.

Results

Emotional exhaustion increased between the first two measurement points (t₁, t₂) but decreased in the following period (t₂, t₃). The changes in the two periods did not differ significantly from each other. Neither gender, age, nor the teaching profession studied influenced the change in emotional exhaustion. The hours spent in distance learning were also not a significant predictor.

Conclusion

In summary, the COVID-19 pandemic does not appear to be associated with higher emotional exhaustion across the veteran teachers. However, there are some teachers whose emotional exhaustion rises to high levels. Those teachers deserve special attention.

A Phenomenological Study of Educators' Experience After a Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

This phenomenological study investigated educators' lived experiences of teaching online in higher institutions in Malaysia. Data, which was generated through semi-structured interviews with 20 lecturers from three universities in the country, was analysed based on the thematic analysis approach guided by the Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge (TPACK)-self-efficacy framework. The findings revealed that after a year of teaching online, the potential of technology has been acknowledged by the educators after some trials and constraints were addressed. The domains related to Technology Content Knowledge (TCK), Technology Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK), and TPACK were evident in the findings. However, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) was not given emphasis, hence this manuscript argues that educators need to be constantly reminded of the significance of PCK. The findings discussed in this manuscript can be a helpful guide for educators when there is a need for them to teach online.

Distance Education among Italian Teachers: Differences and Experiences

The successful integration of technology in teaching is a key component of education. Although prior research highlighted factors fostering the use of technology by teachers, few studies focused on whether these factors vary among teachers of different grade levels and subjects. Moreover, no studies have investigated personal experiences related to distance education among a large sample of teachers. To address these gaps, the present mixed-method study sought to examine whether factors promoting distance education varied among Italian teachers of different grade levels and subjects. A further aim was to explore experiences of teachers using distance education. The sample involved 357 Italian teachers and preservice teachers who completed an online questionnaire during the COVID-19 pandemic that also contained open-ended questions. Findings indicated that teaching self-efficacy was greater in pre-service and primary teachers, while facilitating conditions were greater in humanities and science secondary teachers. The perceived ease of use of technology and technology for pedagogy skills were more pronounced among science secondary teachers. Advanced technology skills were lower in humanities secondary teachers while the behavioural intention to use technology was greatest among pre-service teachers. Four themes emerged from the qualitative study of teachers' insights. These included positive and negative aspects of using technology, the relationship with students, the versatility of distance education, and the quality of lessons. This study underscores the need to address training based on different teachers' grade levels and subjects, and to focus on the emerging themes to better integrate the use of technology in schools.

Teachers' Burnout Risk During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Relationships With Socio-Contextual Stress-A Latent Profile Analysis

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to identify distinct burnout profiles of teachers and to examine their association with work-related stressors, such as workload, students' misbehavior, classroom resources, professional recognition needs and poor colleague relations, as well as socio-demographic variables. Survey data were collected from 330 kindergarten and primary school teachers (84 males, M _age = 38.3, SD = 9.14). The latent profile analysis revealed four distinct profiles. The antecedents of teacher burnout (TB) profiles were the stress generated by workload, students' misbehavior, and low professional recognition. The socio-demographic variables, with the exception of gender, were covariates of the TB profiles. The findings implies that career opportunities prospects, classroom management and time-management programs may be useful in preventing teacher burnout.

Teaching during a Pandemic: United States Teachers' Self-Efficacy During COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic had significant implications on schools during 2020, with districts moving to all virtual instruction during the spring and facing the debate of how to return safely to school in the fall. With these decisions, teachers, schools, and districts faced many challenges when providing face-to-face, hybrid, and virtual teaching. The purpose of this study was to explore how the new teaching approaches and requirements have impacted teachers' self-efficacy, specifically instructional and engagement efficacy. The current study included 361 participants from across the United States who completed the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) subsections of instruction and engagement. The results found the average teacher self-efficacy scores for both instruction and engagement were lower than TSES scores of instruction and engagement in previous studies. The results also indicated teachers who are teaching virtually had the lowest efficacy scores compared to teachers teaching in a hybrid or all in-person model. However, the results suggested no difference in efficacy score based on years of teaching experience, teacher location, previous accolades, or instruction level.